Family games nights herald back to times gone by when families would gather around the dining room table, laughing and jostling, and engage in friendly competition. These nights speak of a simpler time when devices and screens did not play such a significant role as they do now. Family games nights meant connection, comradery and communication – qualities that often seem severely lacking in today’s culture.
Playing family games at home with your kids can evoke real and positive change in not only your relationships but in the cognitive (learning and thinking) development of your children. These games can take the form of educational and logic toys and other stimulating material, right up to ‘sit down and play it out’ board games. Regardless of the age or developmental level of your child, playing games is key to helping their little minds grow (and strengthening your relationship as an added bonus).
Games for Little Ones
Logic games for little tackers help them to put together ‘brain skills’ and enhance their capacity to learn in context. You’ll see key areas developing like memory, cause and effect, prediction and creative thinking. Playing these games with your child, or letting them play on their own, will see them take on educational challenges and embrace their own sense of self as they work their way through the games.
Games for Bigger Kids
Settle in for fantastic family games nights with a range of board games that allow children to develop patience, perseverance and resilience as they learn the rules of the game and play to win. Healthy competition breeds an improvement in relationships as children navigate the game (with your help) by communicating and reaching a shared understanding of the complexities of the task at hand.
Classic Family Games
Chess, tic tac toe and draughts have long been staples around the family games table and it’s not difficult to see why! These classic games of patience and skill provide ample opportunity for relationship and cognitive development as the whole brain gets a workout. Prediction, planning ahead, re-evaluating strategy and memory all play a part in these wonderful, old-fashioned games that never go out of style.
Relationships First!
Family games allow us to connect with our children. Laughing, negotiating and working together as a team brings us back to the very basic social skills that are sometimes lacking in the push and pull of everyday life. It’s the chance to connect over a shared enjoyable activity that encourages us to make family games nights a regular part of our weekly schedule. It’s the kind of rule based, structured activity that should not only be encouraged but embraced!
